Since their post-Covid resumption in March 2022, our free community English classes for children from nearby villages have continued without interruption and with much improvement among our young learners. Currently, 20–25 students follow English class here at Little Hearts every morning from 8.00 to 9:30 a.m. with Teacher Zal. (They then attend their regular government schools in the afternoon shift.)
Just as we do for our own kids in their daily English classes, we select a Student of the Month (based on their academic performance) among the community learners as well. We also hand out a monthly Best Behaviour award, based on behaviour, regular attendance, and active participation in class. Last Monday the community children took their monthly exam, and once Teacher Zal had finished grading the tests and compiling the results, it was time to name the winners of these awards.
Soeun Gechly, 12 years old, was the Student of the Month in June. She started attending our English classes only recently on the urging of her friend Sol Sithai, who has been with us for longer. Gelchy used to study in private school offering an international programme, hence her prowess in English, but her parents can no longer afford to pay her tuition fees, so she has had to join a government school. She is happy to have found Little Hearts’ English programme so that she can continue to refine her language skills.
The Best Behaviour prize went to Rern Neartey, who is also 12 years old. She had a 100% attendance record during the month of June and oozes enthusiasm at class meetings, actively participating in every activity, even during clean-up time.
Besides the two award winners, Teacher Zal recognised five others who deserved honourable mention:
- Kim Heang, 11
- Leang Sanly, 12
- Ven Srey, 12
- Sol Sithai, 12
- Phat Sreypich, 11
During June, the children focussed on expressing different emotions in English, forming sentences and creating small dialogues about their feelings, usually starting with a question like ‘how are you today?’
During one of these exchanges, several kids answered the question with ‘I am sad today’. Why, inquired Teacher Zal. The response, in several cases, was ‘I am sick’. But the children didn’t look ill, so Teacher Zal probed further. The truth: ‘My stomach is sick because I am hungry.’ One child, eager to be understood, added some sound effects: ‘My stomach says “grrr grrr” because I am hungry.’
As it turned out, many of the children in class that day had not had any breakfast. They had been up since 6 am, had arrived at Little Hearts at 7 am, well ahead of their scheduled course hour, and now, at almost 9 am, they were starving. That’s when we realised that we had to feed them at the beginning of each class. As we all know, you can’t think straight, much less learn a foreign language, on an empty stomach!
The breakfast plan was quickly put into place, and at the next meeting the kids got noodles and biscuits before starting their class. Last week we fed the community kids several times, and the plan is to make breakfast an integral part of the English classes for all kids, every day. Right now this extra expense is coming out of Little Hearts’ general budget, but if there is a generous individual or company out there who would like to sponsor daily breakfast for our community learners, please do get in touch!
It’s important to remember that our community English education, modest though it may be, can be a life-changing experience for some of these impoverished children. As you may remember from a previous story, learning English and becoming a part of the Little Hearts community can have a tangible impact on their job prospects when they reach maturity. Here’s another delightful anecdote that confirms this: a few months ago, Tony took a few of our residents to swim at a hotel pool in Phnom Penh. While the lucky kids were frolicking in the water, a young woman came up to Tony to thank him for everything Little Hearts had done for her. Tony didn’t recognize her at first, but she turned out to be one of the graduates of our community English programme. She had gotten her job working in the hotel’s front office because of her language skills – the manager appreciated someone who could speak in English to the hotel’s mostly foreign clientele. The seeds we sow in our community – you never know what benefits they may bring in the future…
